Natural Course of Muscular Strength, Physical Performance, and Musculoskeletal Symptoms in Hospitalized Patients With COVID-19.
Ayça Utkan Karasu, Levent Karataş, Yeşim Yıldız and 1 others
PMID 36103903WHAT IT FOUND
Most hospitalized COVID-19 patients improved over 12 weeks, but sit-to-stand speed remained slow in many.
Hand grip strength was normal in almost all, so lower-limb function lagged behind.
Key findings
01Hand grip strength increased significantly over time in all disease severity groups, but it did not differ between severity groups.
02At the 12th week, 40.0% of mild, 57.9% of moderate, and 54.1% of severe patients had slower five-times sit-to-stand values than age and sex norms.
03Perceived exertion during daily activities differed between severity groups at baseline and the first week, and it changed significantly over time in all groups.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study included 76 patients at one hospital, so the results may not apply to other settings. Patients who were critically ill, admitted initially to intensive care, pediatric, pregnant, or with neuromuscular, orthopedic, rheumatic disease, or cancer were excluded, so it does not describe the sickest COVID-19 patients. There was no healthy control group, so improvement over time cannot be compared with recovery without infection. Six severe patients moved to intensive care after the third week and three died, so later follow-up in that group was affected. The paper describes the natural course and does not test whether rehabilitation improves these outcomes.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that patients have fully recovered because hand grip strength was normal at 12 weeks. Sit-to-stand time was still slow in 40.0% of mild, 57.9% of moderate, and 54.1% of severe patients at 12 weeks, and the study did not test rehabilitation.